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HOC:Queen's Gambit
The Drone Mainframe's Security Door. The chamber in which all this fighting has been for. Within the massive security hatch lies the road to the Mainframe itself, and therein is the prize. For the Mainframe potentially has the ability to shut down, or perhaps even subvert Decepticon Control of the workforce of Cybertron! This may not sound as a huge tactical advantage to the Wreckers or Mayhem Attack Squad, but the loss of logistics and supply are more than enough to stall the mighty Decepticon Empire's works! Any intel garnered during the Autobot hijacking could be invaluabe. Not to mention the amount of resources the Decepticons would have to spend to destroy their own drones to prevent any further sabotage. It may not be flashy, but the cunning know of what import this is. The room itself within Cybertron is massive, almost even an epic scale. The ceiling is high enough to be readily available for dogfights, gestalts and Trypticon...if you could get them here. Multiple platforms garner the area, as a series of strange tubes and grates decorate the landscape. On one wall, covering the near entirety of it, lies the sealed hatch. Sealed and near impenetrable, the Mainframe's security hatch was managed to be hacked just barely by the Autobot forces. It will open soon and allow access within. However there are multiple factors to deal with as the tactically sound have noted. REACH THE DRONE MAINFRAME.-The first one there can most likely be able to seal the room from pursuit. SECURE THE SECURITY DOOR- Whomever holds the battle at the end of the fight has a significant chance to get reinforcements to the area first, and therefore establish control over the area. The third task? A secret for now.... The access tunnel that leads to the Mainframe is filled with Autobot soldiers, turrets and artillery. A large army has been assembled for this chance, the chance to finally cripple the Decepticon forces, in hopes of a brighter future. There at the front of the team is Elita One. From the access tunnel is a sharp dropoff to the Security Door's room, most Bots will either drop or drive off the side, but some dropships are available to help strategically add teams. She surveys the area, "The timer's almost up. It's time." She looks back to the squadrons assigned here. "This is for a victory, for a way to cripple our enemy. Despite all of our labor, our vorns of infighting, we can cripple their logistics here and now. Do not fight in fear of death, fight for the chance for life....What stake you put into the combat is what will win the day..." Elita One steps forward, "Forward Autobots, Forward for victory, for peace, that we may end our fighting." With that she gestures, openhanded towards the Security Door. "Take...and hold!" Autobot gumbies start to pour out of the access tunnel, leaping in a swarm. Large mobile weapons platforms drop into the great bay, hover jets kicking in. And just for a few moments, she pauses, watching. How many lasercores has she doomed to die this day? Shockwave says, "Security alert detected. Processing. Identified. Drone central mainframe eight-thousand mechanometres north of Tarn. Coordinates incoming." Shockwave says, "The local defence force is engaging but I calculate a one point eight percent chance of successfully repelling a full Autobot invasion." Jazz idly peers down the passage as the troops start to move out. "Watch out for that first step dudes, it's a doozy." Turning his attention away from the forces for the moment, Jazz holds up his photon rifle to make sure it's fully charged, then twirls it twice and returns it to his hip. Turns to flash Elita one of his typical smirks. "Hold tight and stand proud, top pink. I'm gonna get a better view of the 'hood before this shingdig goes down." With a sharp turn he fires his grappler at one of the pipe formations and hoists off the ground. Only to swing under the pipes he snared and slingshot up the other side to reach one of the higher platforms, hunkering down there out of sight. Scorponok says, "This again! Damnable Autobots, if it's not the Coalition, it's THEM! Shockwave, organize a relief force! One suited to accompany ME!" Combat: Jazz slips into the shadows and out of sight... Searchlight snaps into ROBOT MODE! Searchlight has been standing somewhere in the middle of the convoy, staring blankly. As Autobots start cheering for Elita One's epic speech, he snaps back into reality. "There are 346 different shades of orange on this weapons platform." He announces to no one in particular. The Autobots on either side of him take on big step away. Shockwave says, "The Despoiler is fueled and ready." Scorponok says, "Excellent! Decepticon relief team, board the Despoiler and prepare for battle!" Blurr hangs back, listening to Elita One's inspiring words from behind the army of Autobots as they pour in through the tunnel. He paces back and forth impatiently, watching as the others rush forth. Finally, all of Intel's hard work is coming to a head. He hopes that all they've worked so hard for and been through will finally come to fruition. Primus forbid that it should all have been for naught. Nodding as he receives a comm signal from Elita, he confirms with her that he is ready to move. <> He pauses momentarily in his habitual pacing. <<...and good luck.>> With all the chaos enveloping Cybertron, some may have forgotten about the grave threat the Autobots pose to the Decepticon infrastructure. Some, but not Shockwave. No, he has been keeping his optic on Elita One's progress and thwarting her where he can. He has also been making preparations in the event that the drone mainframe falls. He needs to be able to limit the catastrophic impact it would have. But that is only if they fail, and Shockwave does not intend to. The mainframe has been fully kitted out with security precautions and a moderate defence force. Said defenders, well entrenched all along the access tunnel, begin firing on the approaching Autobots. The weapons platforms /they/ use only have /one/ shade. The shade of /badass/. One of the defenders slams his palm down on an alarm, and a transmission is sent directly to Darkmount. Another one spies Jazz as he grapples to an upper pipe and shoots at him, but the Parkour master is already gone. "I think we're in trouble here..." Meanwhile, the Decepticon shuttle Despoiler has left Polyhex and is currently speeding towards the mainframe to reinforce the defenders there. Scorponok had been hunched over in the Despoiler, waiting to deploy from its back hatch. Riding in shuttles can be difficult for him because they're generally not built for massive Decepticons like himself. "DECEPTICONS!" he declares as the Despoiler passes over the Istoral Trench. "The Autobots are TRAITORS to our entire species! See how, even as our world is under the threat of annihilation, they undermine Cybertron's BEST DEFENSE AGAINST DESTRUCTION--US!" His teeth clench tightly as his rage boils over at the thought of it. "Not only will you not show mercy to the Autobot scum, I want you to go further! TORTURE them before you let them die! Then seperate them into pieces and mount them on pikes along the edges of the Trench as a reminder of MY WRATH!" He digs his claws into the floor, then pulls forward to propel himself out the back of the hatch. "Decepticons, counter-attack!" he cries as his huge body plummets down to the battlefield. "PAIN, DISMEMBERMENT, AND DEATH TO ALL AUTOBOTS! FOR CYBERTRON!!!" (Not bad, Scorponok! Good thing I was coaching you the entire time), Zarak thinks. "SHUT UP, ZARAK!" Scorponok yells. Combat: Scorponok inspires Space Shuttle and Shockwave with righteous and heroic words! Space Shuttle follows Scorponok along with the other troops. The Combaticon thinks that pain and death to the Autobots sounds fine to him... Blast Off shifts into his battle-ready robot mode. Elita One leaps off the edge into the burgeoning fray. She surveys the area, as the Autobot forces engage the Decepticons in the area. She hangs back, there are bigger Cons to fry, and there was an unspoken part of the plan that needed taken care of. Her keen eyes direct her to several Bots in need of support, almost absently blasting from a flanking position as she patrols the grounds. "Where are you...If you're not here now, you'll be here soon...." Weapons flash through her hands, "And we both know the stakes." Searchlight marches along, next to a mobile weapons platform. "Lots of wheels here..." He starts to lose himself in counting, when a Titan class nudges him forward with their foot. "S...sorry..." He stumbles along, and begins touching each of his fingertips to his thumbs, trying to stay 'in the moment.' From his concealed perch overhead Jazz hunchs down, watching the view of the burgeoning battle below. Now or never time, he thinks to himself. He springs up and lands on an overhead pipe, balancing precariously upon the narrow length as he sprints along while remaining out of sight of the fighting below, veering off halfway across to skip across a few other struts like stepping stones. Just need to find the right spot for when the time comes... In the middle of the cluster of pipes and supports he ducks down again, pulling something out of a compartment and tucking it away in the cluster for safe keeping. And hoping he doesn't need to actually use it. The Global Pose Tracker marks that Jazz has 'skipped' his action for this round. Blurr continues to wait for Elita One's signal, remaining out of the fray for now. He was likely to have a more substantial advantage if the Decepticons were unaware of his presence until the very last astrosecond. Shockwave steps into the back of the shuttle from the cockpit. He had been using the ship's communications' systems to keep tabs on the Autobots' progress. He arrives in the cargo hold just in time to hear the second half of Scorponok's speech. Shockwave isn't looking at Scorponok, though. He's looking at the other Decepticons and gauging /their/ reaction. He raises his head slightly as Scorponok finishes off with an unusual battle cry. As if to answer Elita One's question, the Despoiler can be seen on the horizon blazing towards them at maximum velocity. The ship's heavy laser guns begin firing at the Autobot lines with powerful but inaccurate bolts of energy. As the defenders fight against the Autobots, Jazz will find that his alternate path is also protected, though somewhat less so. There's less room to maneuver against the pop-up turrets in the pipe, so unless Jazz is like an acrobatics expert or something he might be in trouble. Up above, the Despoiler's deployment hatch slides open to reveal the Decepticon defence force. "AUTOBOTS!" Scorponok roars as he nears the ground. "Your death has arrived!" He slams down next to the Titan that had been nudging Searchlight just a moment ago, hefts him up, and hurls him into a group of other Autobots. "Your best warriors are no match for me! I have slain Primes like they were protoforms!" And he transforms into battle station mode, numerous turrets flipping up and into life to hose down the Autobots with gunfire, and right in their own midst! "DIEEE! DIEEEE!" Scorponok sprawls out into his enormous battlestation mode! Blast Off flies down, surveying the scene. The Combaticon is less than pleased about going underground again- it reminds him of another time he was fighting for the control of the drone network-and nearly trapped there with a horde of attacking drones- but at least the area they are heading towards seems nice and roomy. There is enough space for him to fly about in space shuttle mode- and engage his enemies with ease. If he can fly overhead, keeping out of reach while raining destruction on the pathetic ground-pounders below, Blast Off is content. He flies up to a high perch in the shadows, looking for a good target- one worthy of his considerable skills! Just as the Decepticon shuttle starts to drop off forces, an enormous rumbling noise hits the area. Claxons of immense size start blaring, lights flashing. Within the area, the ground shakes and not just from Scorponok! Enormous pistons and gears, once dead now slowly remember their old life as the Mainframe door squelches, rust and dust shaking off of it as it starts to open. Elita One's optics grow wide as the moment arrives, <> She scans the shuttle, about to deliver her orders when mortar fire launches from the Bot positions towards the Despoiler. Several large arcing shots start rocking the ship. Elita One takes a moment to hit a private comm to Jazz, <> The Drone Mainframe's Security Door [ Welcome to the Drone Mainframe ] Inside the Drone Mainframe's enormous vault door is a staggeringly long and complex tunnel that leads to the inner sanctum and the mainframe itself. The tunnel has a hundred twists and turns, several eerie colored lights reflect off the dark cool metal. Stout metal beams cross the path for unknown reasons. Even for an experienced racer, this is the track of a lifetime. -----( Race Conditions )------------------------------------------------------ POSITIONS PER LAP: 10 LAPS PER RACE: 5 ENERGON PER TURN: 1 MAX BASE VELOCITY: 100 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Type !racehelp for a list of commands Type !placements for current standings [ Race Track Commands ] !addme Adds you to the current race !delme Removes you from the current race !placements Shows who's winning !positions Lists the current SPATIAL track position of each participant !referee (Admin) Make someone a referee !init (Referee) Start a new race. Resets energon, positions. !new round (Referee) Advances the race by one turn !remove (Referee) Remove a player from the race !listparams List modifiable race parameters !param =(Referee) Change Race Parameters Race: Race: Blast Off joins the race. Shockwave says, "Blast Off. Stop Blurr." Blast Off says, "My ..pleasure." <> Is the only comm reply Elita One gets. With his 'last ditch' in place Jazz hops back out onto the piping to continue what ever sly strategy he was on. A turret pops up and swings towards him, but the Master of Style is two steps ahead as he takes a jump of faith and actually darts a few steps along the chamber wall to avoid the shots and then flip off the surface onto a platform. Well they probably heard that, so he might as well give them plenty more to hear. But before the source is seen the presence is heard, the ominous rolling into a rocking playback that's taking advantage of the chamber's vast acoustics to be difficult to pinpoint the source as it rumbles through the breaking battlefield. o/~ Stormy night under jet black skies, Billy pulls into town. Thunder rolled and the lightnin bolts come crashin to the ground o/~ And then it's visible, a shadow against the walls highlighted by the firefight below, dashing across the platforms. The ringing of a grappler grabbing a metal strut followed by Jazz swinging down from amongst the pipework, the music now clearly coming from his soundsystem. o/~ Cold as ice, heart of stone as he walks into the room, with another man who was feelin the same way All hell breakin loose o/~ The line releases and Jazz flips over in midair, leveling his rifle even as he passes over acrobatically to strafe several shots across the Con ranks. o/~ Bang Bang, shoot'em up o/~ Jazz lands in a crouch, only to push himself to his feet and swing his other arm out to the side, and a final shot rings out towards the Headmaster base from his sonic blaster. o/~ Bang Bang, blow you away! o/~ Combat: Jazz appears from the shadows... Shockwave emerges immediately after Scorponok, boot thrusters keeping him aloft as faster (and more eager) Decepticons zoom forward. Scanning from above, Shockwave now spies Blurr hiding in the back field. <> he states, pointing. <> The Decepticon remains where he is for several moments longer to fully absorb the battlefield. His defenders are doing relatively well, but it will all be for nothing if Blurr manages to sneak in past the defences. Unaware of the threat that is Jazz (until after he reveals himself and blasts Scorponok, anyway), Shockwave starts to descend, firing powerful plasma bolts at the Autobot troopers in order to complement those from the Despoiler. He knows Elita is there, but is determined to wipe out her army first. Combat: Sneak Attack!! Combat: Jazz strikes Defense Base with his Modern Day Cowboy attack! -2 Fortress Maximus has arrived. Blurr paces, and paces...waiting and waiting for Elita One's signal to move. Finally, the Decepticons arrive in the Despoiler, with Shockwave and Scorponok in the lead. Well, it was looking like they brought the big guns. Which was a telltale sign of how important the mainframe was to them. "Come on, Autobots...we have to win this..." he urges from afar as he watches the battle in the security room below. And finally, the time comes. He doesn't need Elita One to tell him that the doors are opening, as the entire room starts to shake as the enormous pistons groan to life. Spotting Blast Off, the courier knows the Combaticon is his only real competition for this. But given his experience with Blast Off's speed in past races, Blurr is sure not going to go easy on this guy. Plus, right now there is a lot more at stake than bragging rights, trophies, or even military hardware. Thus, without a moment's hesitation, Blurr is off, sprinting to the end of the tunnel and down toward the doors as they start cranking open. Pushing off of the tunnel's edge, he springs forward and transforms in midair, his rear boosters accelerating him ahead at a dizzying speed. In a flurry of moving parts, Blurr folds down into a pale blue-colored supersonic hovercar. Combat: Cybertronian Hovercar sets his defense level to Neutral. Race: Cybertronian Hovercar joins the race. Blast Off sees the Mainframe Door begin to open. He flies in for a closer look, then receives a radio signal from Shockwave. He looks down to spot a streak of very familiar blue racing below him. <> He pauses for a split second... he only recently lost that big race to Blurr, and it still stings. But then... that MUST have been a fluke, it HAD to have been. He instantly recognises what Blurr is up to- and the fact that HE is the only one who can stop him. THIS...THIS will be his chance to redeem himself... wipe that smug look off that blasted Autobot's face, as well as show Onslaught exactly WHY he keeps the space shuttle around. He touches off, transforming to shuttle mode and in hot pursuit of the hovercar. Up above the battle below, Cybertron shudders. Plates open up, eliciting a groan from machinery not used in vorns. The slow rumbling squeals and squelches. Then with a shift of gears, a hatch opens, spilling downwards onto the field is a huge pile of junk. Scrap, garbage and rust just cover one of the higher platforms, spilling off the edge. As some of the Decepticon gumbies in the area try to make sense of the sudden deluge of garbage. Foreshadow scowls, "I have a bad feeling about this...." Somewhere closeby, a keyboard plays a fast simple tune. Spoiler looks about, his pistol at the ready, "Did you hear that? We'd better check it out." Foreshadow and a few of the other Con gumbies grab a large sheet of metal, grunting as they move it aside to reveal a visorplated orange scrap mech beneath. With a cheerful tone, the mech announces, "Suddenly Junkions!" as the rest of the Junkion 'Beater' squadron surfaces from the heap, BoomB-Ox in his stereo mode, as With a disdainful shrug, Blast Off transforms into a space shuttle. Combat: Space Shuttle sets his defense level to Neutral. Elita One scours the battlefield until the telltale visual of the shoxcannon leads her to her pray. There he is, Big Purple himself, raining death on the Autobot forces. Elita One braces herself for the danger before her. "Step one..." she murmurs. Her weapons swap out to the battle pistols she' Defense Base gets hit by numerous small arms fire from the gumbies, and he laughs as it does little to no damage. Then a sonic blast slips between armor plates and his hull is rent open like tinfoil! "Gah!" he screams, transforming into robot mode. "Jazz! Less than a Prime! Ha! This will be easy!" He fires his antigrav gun at him! Scorponok rises up into his robot mode, with Zarak forming the head! Combat: Scorponok strikes Jazz with his Anti-Gravity Fusion Cannon attack! -8 Combat: That attack has slowed Jazz, making him less efficient. Race: The racers speed around the track, and the scoreboard lights up with the new race standings... Race: Elita One leaves the race. Elita One scours the battlefield until the telltale visual of the shoxcannon leads her to her pray. There he is, Big Purple himself, raining death on the Autobot forces. Elita One braces herself for the danger before her. "Step one..." she murmurs. Her weapons swap out to the battle pistols she's so commonly used. A classic tactic, one that'd alert Shockwave to her of course. This time however, the stakes were a bit higher. Her lasercore pounded as she draws his ire. Combat: Elita One sets her defense level to Protected. Combat: Elita One strikes Shockwave with her Battle Pistols attack! -2 Combat: That attack has temporarily affected Shockwave's Accuracy. (Blinded) [ Racetrack Attack! ] Racer Pos Lap Defense-Level ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ +Space Shuttle 1 1 NEUTRAL -- +Cybertronian Hovercar 1 1 NEUTRAL -- + Racer within ramming distance -> You! [ Sorted by Track Position ] Scorponok says, "I trust you can handle the female, Shockwave!" Shockwave says, "Your trust is well placed." Blurr pays no attention to the Junkions, other than to easily dodge the spewing junk. The courier is focused on the task at hand--he knows everything is basically hinging on him right now...he can't let his team down! For the time being, he pays Blast Off no regard, his agile form a blue and white streak of color flying across the gargantuan security room. Debris flies up behind him, potentially hampering Blast Off's view. Swoopcrafts enter the fray from above, the nimble and dangerous craft start opening fire to ensure aerial dominion over the battlefield. "For Lord Galvatron!" One of the nameless declares. A second one pipes up, "I heard Ultra Magnus was here..." "Yes, so did I...and I just got my energy lasso all looped up just right." The hunter-leader swoops around to start a strafing run, "If he's here, we'll find him soon enough! Forward!" Shockwave glares at the ceiling as panels split open, revealing a subterranean (assault force of Junkions! It figures they'd be here to reinforce the allies in their time of need. Shockwave hits the ground hard and immediately grabs one of the Junkions with one hand, flipping him over and smashing him into a second. Both Junkions split apart into a huge heap of... junk. "I've fallen!" one shouts, "And I can't get up!" He then gets back up because he's a Junkion and having half your body smashed off is just standard. Shockwave meanwhile continues his rampage, melting a third Junkion's arm off before clashing with and throwing aside a fourth. Before he can keep going, Shockwave staggers due to pistol blasts peppering him in the back. Without hesitation, Shockwave's gun arm whips out and fires a quick gamma bolt back at her. Is Elita able to save her Junkion buddies? Combat: Shockwave misses Elita One with his Snapshot (Disruptor) attack! Shockwave also waits to hear whether Scorponok corrects the Sweeps. Elita One anticipated the shot. She cycles through her processor, her history of combat with him showing itself...'Starts off with a quick shot, then moves into melee....' She adds, 'didn't overexpose himself, he's crunching the numbers...' Her weapon shifts, to a more unique long barreled pistol. 'Time for a classic.' She moves into visibility, using the already building pile of debris as her cover. She braces behind a pile of junk, steels herself then snaps up. "Shockwave!" The sleek black Path Blaster makes a most familiar sound, both her hands on the oversized weapon, as she shoots at her nemesis! Combat: Elita One sets her defense level to Guarded. Combat: Elita One uses up a charge on her Hell Hath No Fury booster pack! Combat: Elita One strikes Shockwave with the Elita One-forged Path Blaster attack! Space Shuttle keeps up with Blurr, matching his speed (yessss!), his sensors locked on the Autobot as he kicks up debris. But the Combaticon is more interested in reaching the Mainframe first than trying to engage Blurr right now. He can't afford to be hit by some stray laserfire- or garbage, apparently?.... He focuses on reaching the door first. If an opportunity to shoot presents itself, he may consider taking it...but for now- the door beckons. Race: The racers speed around the track, and the scoreboard lights up with the new race standings... The Drone Mainframe's Security Door [ Welcome to the Drone Mainframe ] Inside the Drone Mainframe's enormous vault door is a staggeringly long and complex tunnel that leads to the inner sanctum and the mainframe itself. The tunnel has a hundred twists and turns, several eerie colored lights reflect off the dark cool metal. Stout metal beams cross the path for unknown reasons. Even for an experienced racer, this is the track of a lifetime. -----( Race Conditions )------------------------------------------------------ POSITIONS PER LAP: 10 LAPS PER RACE: 5 ENERGON PER TURN: 1 MAX BASE VELOCITY: 100 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Type !racehelp for a list of commands Type !placements for current standings [ Racetrack Attack! ] Racer Pos Lap Defense-Level ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ +Space Shuttle 1 2 NEUTRAL -- +Cybertronian Hovercar 2 2 NEUTRAL -- + Racer within ramming distance -> You! [ Sorted by Leadership ] That was certainly successful in getting Scorponok's attention! The sonic blaster doesn't actually smoke like a hot gun would but Jazz holds it up to mimic blowing off the barrel all the same. "Now now, no need to throw a tantrum just because on of yer preferred playmates ain't here. Good ol' Jazz can punch yer dance card just as well." As the Headmaster commander raises his cannon Jazz twists to dive to the side, avoiding the actual shot. But the anti-gravity shockwave from the blast hitting the ground still sends him tumbling as it rends apart the metal deck it struck in the field of effect. "Whoa, heavy dude. Except like totally not." Ugh, that's got some of his systems in a sizzle, but that's not gonna stymy his shinizzle. Springing to his feet Jazz darts through the fray around them, ducking and weaving the brawling gumbies from both sides. Wait, is he actually going to be crazy enough to charge such a larger, more powerful mech? Yes. Sort of. Up until he suddenly drops to the floor to slide right under Scorponok's legs! He rolls over after passing to flip upright once more, and levels his photon rifle at the headmaster's backside. "Yo, big dude, over here now! Try and keep up!" Combat: Jazz sets his defense level to Guarded. Combat: Jazz strikes Scorponok with his Solar-Powered Photon Rifle attack! -1 Seven large flatbed trucks roar into the battle, crashing without mercy into the Con gumby forces. Keeping the momentum, the team transforms into a squad of Autobot Titans. The large Bots move in unison, using their flatbed trailers as large tower shields. "Come on men, let's bust up some Cons! Who wants to be tip of the spear?" One rather mottled looking titan clanks forward, "I got this." He slams his hammer into the ground, as the others follow suit, charging in after him. "We'll follow your lead, Linebacker!" Shockwave, a split second after firing, grabs onto one hulking Junkion and lifts him up into the air. Though the Junk is larger, it is clear who is stronger. Bringing his gun arm around, Shockwave prepares to blow the mech's head off at point blank range, but then he staggers. Elita One has hit him with something unusual. Grip faltering, Shockwave drops to one knee, releasing the Junkion. "Woo hoo!" the Junkion Homer Simpsons. Armour growing brittle, Shockwave raises his voice, "Sweeps, terminate the Junkions!" Turning towards Elita One to face her properly, Shockwave remains hunched over. Whenever he moves he can hear his frame creaking and crackling. Forced to keep his movements at a minimum, Shockwave takes a single powerful stomp towards her and fires, trying to fry that Path Blaster out of her hand... and maybe take the hand with it. Clanking in the distance from one of the large access tunnels reveal a series of Decepticon Marauders. The multi-legged turret systems move automatically, analyzing targets. Within moments, the mortar systems and heavy guns start to come online, sending plasma bursts and thick rolling balls of energy into the Autobot lines, sending several flying within moments. Rockets come to bear on two of the Marauders within moments, but the artillery units weather the attack, continuing their spree of killing. Combat: Shockwave misses Elita One with his Irradiate attack! -3 Scorponok does not bother correcting the Swoo--Sweeps. After all, if thinking that Ultra Magnus is here makes them more eager for battle, then why spoil it for them? Though, really, Scorponok would rather do it himself. Who needs four Sweeps to quarter somebody when all you really need is one Scorponok? And yet Jazz might prove to be more of a problem for him as he slips right under him! "What--" he grunts as Jazz slides behind him, and lets out a sudden yelp of pain as his right aftplate gets scorched! "ARRRGH my aft!" (Quit your bellyaching and destroy him already!) Zarak barks into their shared mind. "SHUT UP ZARAK!" Scorponok screams as he whirls around, big feet pounding the ground to keep, swinging a claw down to try and grab Jazz by his waist and bring him up to his face. "Hahaha, not so nimble NOW, are we?" Combat: Scorponok strikes Jazz with his Vice Grip attack! Combat: Jazz has been temporarily incapacitated. Weapon swap...back to the pistols. 'Work him, get him mad...' Elita One moves again, 'abusive and elusive....' As she darts around, trying to strafe around Shockwave, he opens fire again. 'He's in it for oil. No melee yet...he knows he's got the power, and he knows I can outmaneuver him...He'll try to lure me." <> <> She pauses, the Shoxcannon roaring as it takes out a nearby fallen dropship. <> She shakes her head, strafing Shockwave with pistol fire, nothing fancy as she tries to stay in motion. Combat: Elita One sets her defense level to Protected. Combat: Elita One strikes Shockwave with her Battle Pistols attack! Foreshadow and Spoiler retreat from the Junkion squadron, to a far wall. Foreshadow rubs his head, "That was too easy, we don't just get away from guys." The shorter Spoiler nods, "Yeah...I hear you. Maybe we can just, wait out the fight over here?" Foreshadow waves his hand, "I've got a bad feeling about this." As if to put the dot on the excalmation point on the impending demise, an entire wall suddenly comes free, crushing the two beneath it, though still functional. Behind the wall? Slag, Swoop and Sludge. Were they even supposed to be on Cybertron? Swoop takes flight as the other two meander into the fray. Slag pauses as he looks down at the Con tread upon by their massive bulk. He tilts his head to the side, "Excuse me!" before moving forward to charge at the unprotected flank of the Con forces! Shockwave's brittle armour easily gives way to the pistol blasts. Where normally they'd merely scuff him up and leave dark dents, now they're blowing large holes in Shockwave's torso, causing him to grunt from the pain. He can't catch up to Elita One and he can't draw a bead on her. The Decepticon instead needs something larger to hit with... ah ha. Shockwave reaches, not for Elita, but for that hulking Junkion who doesn't quite clear out of his path fast enough. Hoisting the mech up, Shockwave hurls him towards the Femme Commander as hard as he can. Combat: Shockwave misses Elita One with his Bowling For Female Autobots attack! -2 Despite his best efforts his systems are still lagging a bit from that anti-gravity shock, and it's enough for Scorponok to recover quick enough to grab Jazz in one of his large clawed hands. He squirms a little in the restraining grasp, but for the most part, he's taking it with his usual sly composure. Lifted up to the huge robot's eye level, he stops wiggling and pauses to cock his head to the side a bit. "Maaaaan, you are even more ugly than I thought up close." Smirk returns to his metallic lips. "So are you like the rest of your little mad horde, and your face is on Zarak's butt?" Elita One did not expect that one. She ducks the rotund Junkion who comically pauses, sprawled in debris. "But I don't want to go to school today, mommy!" She spares a second look at him then back to Shockwave. It was working on both accords. He was drawing her out, and she was playing him perfect. Still....his attention wasn't dead on yet. She needed something more. Elita One stands atop a scrap heap, her cannon in her hands. "You understand, don't you? You know you have to fall to get this to work. I'm sure you've processed it." Plasma roars. With a heavy heart, she continues, "At times I thought that maybe you'd see what was best for Cybertron was not tyranny, but your logic is skewed, it always has been. And one thing I've learned..." She blasts again in rapid succession, "Is that some mechs will never...ever change!" Combat: Elita One sets her defense level to Neutral. Combat: Elita One strikes Shockwave with her Plasma Cannon attack! Blurr continues plowing forward across the battlefield, evading stray shots from Marauders and Sweeps, as well as avoiding debris and other obstacles. Swerving to the left, then to the right, transforming briefly to leap over unseen hurdles here and there. He nimbly avoids virtually all crossfire, and continues unhindered. The courier edges ahead of Blast Off without putting forth much effort, as he'd anticipated. Space Shuttle notices Blurr start to edge ahead of him. He thinks, no you don't, Blurr...not again... The shuttle engages his thrusters to full. Locking onto to Blurr with his targeting system, the Combaticon kicks into high gear. It's time to make this count..... At this point (other than dodging as his sensors warn him to) all the other commotion in the battlefield around them just seems to fall away... there's only him, Blurr- and that door. Combat: Blast Off takes extra time to aim his next attack. Combat: Space Shuttle sets his defense level to Fearless. Shockwave wonders if the Autobots consider psychological damage when recruiting Junkions--both to the enemy and to themselves. Stepping forward to let the Sweeps deal with Junkions, Shockwave runs a brief self-diagnostic. His armour is shot and Elita One is always managing to stay ahead of him. Eyeing her on the scrap heap, Shockwave listens coldly to her words, and then gets knocked on his ass from the cannon blast. Skidding backwards into the wall, Shockwave is slow to pick himself back up. "And I, on the other hand, knew straight from the start you would never see past your own short sightedness." He fires a full powered arm cannon blast. "Death was always the only option for you." Race: The racers speed around the track, and the scoreboard lights up with the new race standings... Combat: Shockwave strikes Elita One with his Maximum Powered Arm Cannon Blast attack! [ Racetrack Attack! ] Racer Pos Lap Defense-Level ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ +Cybertronian Hovercar 2 3 NEUTRAL -- Space Shuttle 5 3 FEARLESS -- + Racer within ramming distance -> You! [ Sorted by Leadership ] Scorponok feels conflicted about being a Headmaster sometimes. On the one hand, it was forced on him in a botched attempt at enslaving him. On the other hand, since being binary-bonded to Zarak, Scorponok's been much more focused than he was before. Now, instead of chasing some idiot Autobot pacifist all over the galaxy, he's the leader of the entire Decepticon Empire--well, at least until Galvatron shows back up. But more importantly, though, Scorponok, now he's partially organic, reacts very badly to even the mildest of remarks about his status as a Headmaster. Which is why Jazz shouldn't have said that. "You... hnnngh... you think that's funny, huh?" Scorponok snarls. An Autobot gumby runs up, wielding a plasma axe and crying, "I'll save you, Jazz!" But Scorponok is quick to swat him away with a claw. "Away, pest!" His gaze fixes back on Jazz. "So you think my face is on his butt? No, Jaz..." Scorponok grabs Jazz's legs, and soon begins bending Jazz's back as far as it will go--like he's trying to make him an involuntary contortionist! "YOUR face is on your butt, or it will be! HAHAHAHA!" Combat: Scorponok strikes Jazz with his Titanic Claw attack! -5 Elita One catches the arm cannon blast dead on. The resulting hit knocks her backwards closer to the cliff. She tumbles and rolls on the ground, her body smouldering from the radiation attack. It scrambles her for severaml moments. 'Get up....' Her hands clench as she struggles to her feet, 'get up....take him out' Her optics reset as she stands back up. "Death....was always the only way either of us could stop." Funny that, she mused, how alike both sides could be. So stubborn, so dedicated. She gauges the cliff behind her. The chasm was deep, and considering Cybertron's reformatting? Who knew what lied below now...and she can't fly. She swaps back to the Path Blaster. "So there's only the one way to end this. Fine. You've done too much harm for too long." The Path Blaster roars as she fires again. "Fall Shockwave! Fall!" Her mouth becomes a thin line as the war rages around her, a tiny snapshot of her life since those fateful early days. Explosions, death, friends in peril. Her. Him. Combat: Elita One strikes Shockwave with the Elita One-forged Path Blaster attack! One of the side walls starts to melt into slag, a metallic acrid smell in the air. An enormous red hand pulls aside part of the wall, rending it easily. The red and black combiner Computron makes his appearance. He hefts his acid pellet gun as he computes simply everything going on, and there certainly is a lot to analyze. After several moments, he stomps forward, firing at the Swoopcrafts in the area. "COMPUTATIONS COMPLETE. ANALYSIS: AERIAL DOMINANCE REQUIRED FOR VICTORY CONDITIONS. SOLUTION: ELIMINATE SWEEPCRAFT AND SEEKERS." A lone seeker joins the fray! His actual use in the battle consists of getting lit up by an errant plasma mortar shot which sends him spiralling down in in flames. The cockpit flies open, revealing a small blue box. A tape recorder actually. With the standard transformation sound, the battle is graced by none other than Soundwave. The ominous and reclusive Decepticon Commander draws his rifle then raises his arm to his tab. "RATBAT, EJECT." "BEASTBOX, EJECT." "SLUGFEST, OVERKILL EJECT." Where once was simply one seeker, now is of well organized team of destruction of Soundwave and hi s minions. As Soundwave steps forward, his pace slow and inexorable, he delivers in his monotone best, "OPERATION: DESTRUCTION." The Con comms officer starts to open fire at Computron, leading to a battle of the emotionless! Okay maybe he pushed buttons a little too hard with that last remark, even if he was trying to keep Scorponok's aggro on himself as much as possible. 'You need to stop writing credit vouchers with your vocalizer that your skidplate can't cash' Prowl would say if Prowl was still here. Prowl was a dick like that. Jazz may be very flexible, but that's usually being bent in ways he wants to be bent. Not quite so much when some big bully is trying to bend him into a robotic pretzel, twisting metal and dislocating linkages. "Okay now yer harshin' on my mood. Time to light this baby up!" Jazz tries to shift the way he's being bent to take aim, and fire his shoulder launcher. The missile shoots -right past- Scorponok's head though! Oh no, he missed! ... Or did he, as moments later there's an "AAAAAAAAUGH I'M ON FIRE!" as the strafing Seeker he shot instead comes hurtling down towards Scorponok from overhead while ignited! Combat: Jazz strikes Scorponok with his Flaming Seeker Crash attack! -3 [ Racetrack Attack! ] Racer Pos Lap Defense-Level ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ +Cybertronian Hovercar 2 3 NEUTRAL -- Space Shuttle 5 3 FEARLESS -- + Racer within ramming distance -> You! [ Sorted by Leadership ] The sound of shattered glass echos across the main chamber. Or, it /sounds/ like shattered glass. Instead it is Shockwave's brittle armour cracking and breaking. Purple metal falling off him as he moves, Shockwave raises his hand and looks at it. Rubbing his thumb and forefinger against one another, the metal skin just turns to goo. He already has several hypothesis on the go about how it works, but he pushes that to the back burner. He has to deal with Elita One first. The Decepticon spies the chasm behind Elita One and takes a shot... not at her, but /right in front of her/, trying to cause the ground to explode so she gets knocked backwards into it. Combat: Shockwave strikes Elita One with his Explosive Shot (Disruptor) attack! Combat: Elita One compares her Agility to 80: Failure :( Blurr becomes alarmed as Blast Off suddenly pulls ahead, his thrusters powering to full. And scrap, an alert on his optical display warns that the Combaticon has locked on to him. "Oh no you don't..." he mutters to himself, and his boosters roar as he accelerates as well. He'd promised himself he wouldn't go easy on the mech--not this time. And he plans on making good on that. In the past, with those mostly leisurely races, Blurr had refrained from attacking him. But now, there was far too much at stake to allow the Decepticons to gain the upper servo. Turrets click and hum as they expand out of the sides of the hovercar, directing themselves up at the Combaticon shuttle's undercarriage. Combat: Cybertronian Hovercar sets his defense level to Fearless. Elita One prepared for the counterattack, but with her back to the chasm, there was little to use as cover. When the attack came, she leapt aside as she is prone to do. What was not accounted for was the area starting to crumble beneath her. A large oddly colored chunk of the chasm starts to crumble and slide with her still on it! She scrambles as her footing fails, nearly running up the incline as everything gives way. The rocks tumble. And two hands cling to the edge of the chasm, she starts to haul herself up with the last second catch, but even as she does, she's exposed and vulnerable...and Shockwave was right there. Combat: Blurr uses up a charge on his SuperScopeXT1000 booster pack! Combat: Cybertronian Hovercar strikes Space Shuttle with his Preemptive Strike attack! Even in her precarious state, she lunges at Shockwave, "How's your flight tech now that its all been crispied? Call this a tactical error, Shockwave!" Combat: Elita One strikes Shockwave with her Grab attack! Scorponok guffaws at Jazz as he appears to waste his ammunition firing at nothing. "Desperate to escape, Jazz? It's pointless to--eh?" He turns as he hears the screaming seeker, and his jaw drops when he sees that the seeker is coming right at him! "Wha--" CRUNCH! Scorponok takes the Seeker right in the side, the impact jarring Jazz out of his clutches and sending Scorponok stumbling back. The Seeker who hit him shudders a bit before transforming into robot mode, and, realizing what just happened, holds up his hands at Scorponok. "Wait, no, Lord Scorponok, I did not mean to, I--" "IMBECILE!" Scorponok screams, swinging a claw at the Seeker, which separates his torso from his legs. "Hnngh, and now for YOU, Jazz!" He transforms into Scorpion mode, his stinger whipping out to blast the smaller Autobot with bolts of electricity. "You think you're good at dancing? Well, you'll certainly dancing when I pump you full of 100,000 volts!" Scorponok collapses down into his terrifying scorpion mode! Combat: Giant Scorpion strikes Jazz with his One Hundred Thousand Volts attack! -7 Normally Shockwave would have taken advantage of this golden opportunity by gaining a higher angle in gun mode and annihilating the entire cliff, sending the debris and Elita One plummeting to her doom. But with his armour crinkling like tin foil he's instead left plodding along step by step. "Snap! Crackle! Pop!" a Junkion taunts him as he frolics past, shooting at Sweeps. Shockwave ignores the Junkion just as he ignores Elita One's. She never has realized that taunting him is a waste of vocalizer power. By the time he gets over to the edge of the cliff, Elita One is able to pull herself up and lunge at him. Shockwave doesn't try to move. Instead he reaches out, tries to grab her face with his hand, and drive it and the rest of her head into the ground. Combat: Shockwave strikes Elita One with his Faceplanting (Punch) attack! Combat: Elita One compares her Strength to Shockwave's Strength: Failure :( Elita One raises her hand to her face as she is buried into the ground. Weakly her hands try to push aside Shockwave's massive hand, but he's so much stronger than her, it was nearly impossible. She wasn't dead...but things weren't looking good for her. Fortunately there was more than one trick left up her sleeve. Stopping time might help the others, but it wouldn't kill Shockwave. The block of C-5 she had, however.... Elita One reaches down into her equipment pack, digging out the familiar explosive. Blindly, she slaps it onto Shockwave's side. She was close to it. Real close. This was going to hurt. Combat: Elita One has created a bomb: "Andross Style"! Combat: Elita One sets her defense level to Guarded. Combat: Elita One strikes Shockwave with Andross Style's Huge Explosion #11608 Area attack! Combat: Elita One's Andross Style is destroyed! Combat: Elita One misses herself with Andross Style's Huge Explosion #11608 Area attack! [ Racetrack Attack! ] Racer Pos Lap Defense-Level ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ +Cybertronian Hovercar 2 3 FEARLESS -- Space Shuttle 5 3 FEARLESS -- + Racer within ramming distance -> You! [ Sorted by Leadership ] Space Shuttle ....PULLS AHEAD of BLURR. This...this is what he's been waiting for. Let that Autofool eat his exhaust for once... He continues to surge ahead, savoring the victory. Unfortunately, having this oddly FIRST PLACE view of things means that Blurr is able to raises up his turrets and fire... the Combaticon notices the attack just a moment too late. "GAH!" The attack rips through his undercarraige, sending the shuttle reeling into a pile of debris. The shuttle's engines roar again angrily, and he makes his way back up into the air. Now the blasted 'Bot is ahead. Blast Off locks his targets on Blurr again, but decides he doesn't have time to actually attack.... He just needs to catch up....catch up NOW. Combat: Blast Off takes extra time to aim his next attack. Combat: Space Shuttle sets his defense level to Fearless. Race: The racers speed around the track, and the scoreboard lights up with the new race standings... [ Racetrack Attack! ] Racer Pos Lap Defense-Level ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Cybertronian Hovercar 4 4 FEARLESS -- Space Shuttle 8 4 FEARLESS -- + Racer within ramming distance -> You! [ Sorted by Leadership ] Shockwave grints Elita One's face into the ground, moving it back and forth. His servos are protesting the action by making an awful grinding noise, but Shockwave does it anyway. He then moves to shove her over the edge and into the abyss, but feels something breaching his side. It never would have gotten through had his armour not already been weakened, but the C-5 explodes. Due to the bomb's position, Elita may find herself mostly shielded from the blast, which breaks Shockwave's grip on Elita and propels him sideways. The MilOps Commander careens along the side of the cliff before dangling, and finally falling over. Shockwave vanishes into the pit, not deigning to say anything to Elita as he plummets. Combat: Shockwave begins retreating, leaving himself vulnerable to parting shots from Jazz, Space Shuttle , Cybertronian Hovercar , Elita One, Fortress Maximus, and Searchlight "Aaaw man, this ain't gonna be good." Jazz glances one way, then the other as Scorponok transforms, and then bolts in the opposite direction. Less running away in fear, more just not wanting to stay too close for comfort. Electrical jolts hit the deck behind him, sparks nipping at his heels as he vaults over a toppling Titan and ducks between two other combatants with an "Excuse me comin' through!" that earns a paused stare after the master agent from both sides of the fight. Scorponok finally hits his mark though and a bolt to the back pitchs Jazz forward. He manages to tuck and roll to control his fall, but slamming his shoulders into the unrelenting metal floor is still not comfortable as he tumbles out of it. "Well that was shockin'." He seems to stare up for a moment, then gets back into motion. By rolling over and transforming to land on his wheels in car mode. "Sorry ugly, yer gonna have to do better than that. So how's 'bout I show you the light?" And suddenly the world dissolves into blinding, flashing colors for Scorponok as he activates his laser lights and subsonic woofers in an attempt at getting Scorponok dazed enough to maybe take out some of his own forces instead. o/~Be careful making wishes in the dark, dark Can't be sure when they've hit their mark, mark And besides in the mean, mean time I'm just dreaming of tearing you apart I'm in the de-details with the devil So now the world can never get me on my level I just got to get you out of the cage I'm a young lover's rage Gonna need a spark to ignite! My songs.. know what you did.. in the dark! o/~ Jazz drops down into a breakdancing kick and spin, ending the moves in vehicle mode. Blurr's shots hit home, knocking the shuttle off course. But somehow, Blast Off is still ahead? In fact, he's even out of firing range. How that could be the courier can only guess... Combat: Porsche Turbo strikes Giant Scorpion with his Musical Intervention attack! Searchlight had intended to try and back Jazz up, having found his way into the thick of the fighting...blaster drawn, he takes aim at Scorponok to fire, but then the ripples from Jazz's sonic attack push through the air, obscuring Searchlight's vision like a sudden fog rolling in. He squeezes the trigger. This probably won't go well. Elita One pulls herself up. What a gamble she just took. Despite the entire backdrop behind her, she takes a few moments to look into the chasm from a more stable spot. He had fallen. She exhales, recycling her intake valves. "Its judgement day...and we've made a stand." She looks over, retrieving her discarded Path Blaster. It was broken now, useless scrap. Not even the armor busting tech was left. "And for now the viles of darkness have been driven from the land." She somberly returns to the pit, the chasm. For once...for once she had won even if only for a while. "This battle's over, but the war continues on....and this way it will remain." She drops the Path Blaster into the chasm. Funny how Shockwave didn't make the association. A perfect replica of Optimus' own weapon. "Until the day when all are one..." The weapon disappears into the depths. Combat: Searchlight strikes Giant Scorpion with his Hair Trigger Blaster attack! Space Shuttle is just that MAGNIFICENT, that's how!!!! ...Actually, his time on the ground was short, and he did have the lead to begin with. It's the Combaticon's sheer determination to finally BEAT that hovercar that propels him to "blast" ahead again, giving it everything he has.... that, and he really doesn't want to have to explain to Onslaught how he lost to Blurr again. He keeps his targets locked on Blurr, but doesn't fire... That door is so close now..... Combat: Blast Off takes extra time to aim his next attack. Race: The racers speed around the track, and the scoreboard lights up with the new race standings... Race: Space Shuttle crosses the finish line! Race: Cybertronian Hovercar crosses the finish line! Giant Scorpion is hellbent on finishing off Jazz, but once that diorienting light and sound show hits him, his targeting sensors go wild. "Hnnngh--can't... think! What is this horrific noise!" he bellows, claws snapping about wildly. (Scorponok, get a grip on yourself, it's just music!) Zarak snaps in their minds. "AAAAGGHH!" is all Scorponok can yell in reply as he takes a shot from SOMEWHERE and yells, "VERY WELL! I'll just... shoot... EVERYONE!" And his shoulder-mounted cannons spin around and begin blasting everything in the area, friend or foe! Combat: Giant Scorpion 's Twin Pulse Blasters attack on Elita One goes wild! Combat: Giant Scorpion strikes Space Shuttle with his Twin Pulse Blasters Area attack! -5 Combat: Giant Scorpion 's Twin Pulse Blasters attack on Porsche Turbo goes wild! Combat: Giant Scorpion strikes Rumble with his Twin Pulse Blasters Area attack! -5 Combat: Giant Scorpion (Scorponok) used "Twin Pulse Blasters": A Level 3 AREA-RANGED attack. Combat: You took 12 damage. Combat: Giant Scorpion 's Twin Pulse Blasters attack on Searchlight goes wild! Combat: Giant Scorpion strikes Shockwave with his Twin Pulse Blasters Area attack! -5 Both Blurr and Blast Off finish the tunnel in record time, through the strange gravity warping tunnel, having dodged all the strange stalks and lasers....Now the two had made it to the same point at a close enough time that neither could shut the other out. So now, one con, one bot were together in the mainframe. Large viewscreens of random drone activity flicker, lights alternate back and forth as the delicate computer system is RIGHT THERE. But to reprogram it, one of the two had to not be there, either outside or non functional. As Scorponok starts spinning his guns while flipping his lid Jazz pops the brake and throws his gears into reverse, the Porsche's wheels squealing as he floors it backwards from the random barrages of gun fire. There's a *WHUD* as he reverse-runs over a Con trooper, the mook tumbling forward over his cab and hood and into the lines of fire instead of him. But it's better that way. Finally he drifts into a spinning turn to stop and flips back into robot mode, rolling behind some battle debris to take cover from the rest of the stray fire tearing through the fight. With that classic sound the sporty racer pops up into a stylin' robot. Elita One takes The Drone Mainframe's Security Door . Elita One moves south to the Istoral Trench. Elita One has left. Elita One arrives from the Istoral Trench to the south. Elita One has arrived. Combat: Jazz takes extra time to steady himself. Pass Elita One moves south to the Istoral Trench. Elita One has left. Shockwave vanishes out of reality. Shockwave has left. Searchlight vanishes out of reality. Searchlight has left. Bonecrusher vanishes out of reality. Bonecrusher has left. Scorponok vanishes out of reality. Scorponok has left. Blurr surges ahead, his determination never once waning. He watches as the shuttle's form comes nearer and nearer as he closes the distance between them. It's not much farther...just a few more clicks...aaaand he's in! The courier speeds through the door just behind Blast Off, finding that the two of them would end up inside the mainframe alone. Well then. It would seem this was going to have to come down to a duel to the death or stasis lock. Blurr knew the day would come. He decides to be the one to start them off, and he transforms, blasters expanding out of his subspace to fire upon the Combaticon. The hovercar quickly unfolds upward and outward to reveal the fastest terrestrial Cybertronian in the galaxy, Blurr! Combat: Blurr strikes Space Shuttle with his Disruptor attack! Space Shuttle actually reaches the door first (Oh, sweet success-kind of!)...but Blurr is hard on his afterburners, reaching the same spot almost at the same time. The shuttleformer doesn't have a lot of time to savor his victory, either- a stray blast suddenly hits him from somewhere on the battlefield, damaging his vertical stablizer. "Slag..." He did not need that right now. And the hits continue- Blurr isn't messing around, any more than the Combaticon is. He strikes Blast Off, who is now reeling from several attacks in a row (in his more vulnerable shuttle form, no less) and ...he's pretty much out of energon. Blast Off gave it all he had to win... he's not quite ready for one-on-one combat. He transforms. He really doesn't like physical combat (his skills involve flying and shooting, not roughhousing... his "crude" frame just isn't built for it....). But he has to do something. He jumps at the Autobot, trying to grab him and knock him off balance. "What, playing dirty now are we, Autobot? Several underhanded attacks on me now.... I thought you were supposed to be "better" than that?" Blast Off shifts into his battle-ready robot mode. Combat: Blast Off sets his defense level to Protected. Combat: Blast Off strikes Blurr with his Desperate Times Call for Desperate Measures.... (Grab) attack! Blurr grins at Blast Off's insult, feigning surprise. "Really? Who ever told you that, Decepticon? I certainly didn't." He's just as drained as his opponent, but manages not to show it. But perhaps that's why he wasn't able to jump out of the way before the Combaticon lunges at him and grabs him. Fine, he wanted to get in close? Blurr can certainly play that game! The speedster twists, balling a fist to attempt a punch straight to Blast Off's faceplates! Combat: Blurr strikes Blast Off with his Up Close and Personal (Punch) attack! Blast Off reels back as Blurr's punch cracks an optical visor, damaging his ability to "see" and evade. Ok, well.... again, there's a REASON he doesn't like this up-close-and-personal combat, after all. "I.... see." The Combaticon wipes away some energon and tries to leap out of arm's reach of Blurr, heading towards one side of the computer panels. He's still too exhausted and damaged to attack, and tries to dodge the Autobot long enough to power up some weapon systems.... "Another thing I see... is that I finally beat you in a race, Blurr. So much for your racing superiority...." Combat: Blast Off sets his defense level to Protected. Combat: Blast Off takes extra time to steady himself. Pass Blurr shrugs. Did he think that would somehow faze him? "And that matters how, at this moment in time?" He asks, folding his arms and glaring at the retreating Combaticon. "Right now the only thing that matters is the mainframe. Which is going to be Autobot property, in just a few breems, here. Just look at yourself. You're battered, bruised, and exhausted--just face it. There's no way you're going to beat me this time, Blast Off." he smirks slightly. "Not that you ever really have." Combat: Blurr sets his defense level to Protected. Combat: Blurr takes extra time to steady himself. Pass Blast Off stands there, face to face with his biggest rival, trying to stablize. A brief glance towards the doorway shows that- Pffft, as usual- the Combaticon finds himself all alone. Isn't that just the story of his life. Ah well, it's a large part of why he keeps convincing himself that he doesn't want the company, anyway. He glares at Blurr, still wiping away energon from a leak on his optic. ".... Perhaps, perhaps not, Blurr. But I worry you, don't I?" he says confidently, tilting his head. "You like to boast and brag, and yet I notice you weren't doing that tonight any more than I was.... No, you HAVE to concentrate; to take me seriously- because you know that if ANYONE is ever going to beat you, it will be ME. And I learn more EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. we meet, Blurr." With that, the Combaticon decides he fianlly has enough energon to attack, so he does, using his preferred method- his ionic blaster. Combat: Blast Off misses Blurr with his I'm Going to Keep Nipping at Your Heels- Until They Don't Work Anymore (Laser) attack! Blurr strafes sideways as Blast Off's ionic blaster discharges at him, and the shot soars past him, scorching a wall on the far side of the room. "Eh, you worry me just about as any other Decepticon would." he says, shrugging. He may be tired from racing down the tunnel toward the mainframe, but he's still got the moves. "Come on now...you can do better than that, can't you?" he taunts, leveling another potshot at him. Combat: Blurr misses Blast Off with his You're gonna have to do better than that! (Disruptor) attack! Blast Off could be seen to be smirking at that comment, if he didn't have a faceplate. Having gained a slight "second wind", he is able to see Blurr's shot coming and dodge out of the way in time. "That good enough? ....You know what, Blurr? I DON'T BELIEVE YOU. I have studied you enough to tell when you're having to take things seriously.... which is hard, sometimes, isn't it? You're so used to just breezing through life... Well, let's see if you can "breeze" through this!" He shoots again. Fortress Maximus vanishes out of reality. Fortress Maximus has left. Combat: Blast Off misses Blurr with his Not So Gentle Breeze attack! -2 Blurr chuckles. "Breeze!" he laughs, as he again jumps out of the way, this time twisting to the left to avoid the shot, which ends up destroying the projector for the holo-display showing various drones going about their work. "Better be careful, Blast Off...if you keep this up there might not be a drone mainframe to be had once we're finished here. I can't imagine Shockwave would be very happy about that." He suddenly lunges forward, attempting to take the Combaticon off guard and knock him off of his feet. Combat: Blurr misses Blast Off with his Knock you off your feet (Grab) attack! Blast Off is too tired to really care much right now. Besides... "Don't be a fool- I am very careful concerning where I aim. It was not the main computer, it will not be too hard to repair. Besides, I think he'd place priority over me stopping you... if the Autobots get this computer it doesn't really matter anyway." The Combaticon then avades Blurr's sudden grab, but feels another twinge of pain as a circuit ruptures from all the leaping about. However, he can't really pay too much attention right now. As the Autobot rushes past him, he tries to use their close proximity to trip up the 'Bot himself. Combat: Blast Off misses Blurr with his That Looks Like a Good Idea I Think I'll Try It Myself... (Grab) attack! ...which doesn't work, either. Blurr jumps out of the way, once he realizes he's failed to knock his opponent over. Okay, this was quite enough. "Okay, no more games. We're finishing this. Either you're going down, or I am." Transforming, he drives at the Combaticon, attempting to slam him into the far wall and deliver the final blow! In a flurry of moving parts, Blurr folds down into a pale blue-colored supersonic hovercar. Combat: Cybertronian Hovercar sets his defense level to Fearless. Combat: Blurr uses up a charge on his Quantum Stabilizers booster pack! Combat: Cybertronian Hovercar strikes Blast Off with his Wall Slam attack! Blast Off chuckles. For some reason, Blurr becoming so serious just makes the normally deadly-serious Combaticon want to laugh. It might also be that he's getting light-headed from all the energon loss. "Good, I am glad to see you get serious. It's about time. I TOLD you I'd wipe that smirk off your face.... I suppose that will do, for now. Though shooting your head off would be even better...." Then, in a blurr, Blurr transforms and comes right at the injured 'Con, knocking him into the wall! He yells in pain as his armor buckles and cracks from the impact and more circuits fry. He scrambles off to the side, shaking his head and trying to clear the static in his optics. His vents heave as he raises his blaster again, trying to back away and shoot at the same time. Unfortunately, Blurr also kind of crushed his shooting arm, which still works ...but barely. But he's got to try. The Decepticons- who are NOWHERE TO BE SEEN, BY THE WAY... are counting on him. "Yes, I am quite happy to bring this to an end. It is time we finished this..." He fires. Combat: Blast Off sets his defense level to Protected. Combat: Blast Off strikes Cybertronian Hovercar with his All Good Things Come To An End attack! -3 Wiped the smirk off of his face? Not really! Blurr is certainly smirking inwardly now, as he hears and feels the satisfying noise of buckling Combaticon armor against the front of his hovercar form. "Nah." The speedster transforms as Blast Off tries to back away. And indeed, he is smirking. "See? Look, I am still smirking." And in a flash, the courier is standing over him, even as his ionic blaster catches him in the side. He staggers backward a bit, but is otherwise undeterred. "Hmmm..let's see, how should I kill you? Should I run you into the wall again, shoot you, or simply end you with my bare hands?" Hmm...rather dark words, especially for an Autobot. But perhaps Blast Off knows why... "I think I'll go with the bare hands. But for what it's worth--I'm glad you're happy to end this. I am too! Especially since it involves ending you." His weapons retract, and he grabs the Combaticon, holding him up against the wall with one hand while the other forms a fist that bears down on him in a thousand different places all at the same time, it seems. The hovercar quickly unfolds upward and outward to reveal the fastest terrestrial Cybertronian in the galaxy, Blurr! Combat: Blurr strikes Blast Off with his A Thousand Different Punches in a Thousand Different Places (Punch) attack! Blast Off waves Blurr off as he prattles on about still smirking. "You bluff, too, Autobot, I am well aware of that, as well." Suddenly the Combaticon feels himself heaved up quicker than the optic can almost see, and smashed against the wall again by the slightly larger Autobot. There's a coughing sound from Blast Off's vocalizers, and he manages to whisper, "Ah... see? I have made you *zzk* so angry, so serious... you've *crackle* forgotten yourself. You sound like no Autobot *sch* I've ever heard... No matter what happens now, can you call *zkk* THAT a victory, Blurr?" He also knows there is another reason behind the Autobot's words, but it still feels good to twist in that knife.... What doesn't feel so good is the massive damage the Autobot is inflicting on him. He can feel his conciousness fading, but somehow he isn't out yet. "I ..I have to admit.... I made a mistake in underestimating you once, Blurr... but you still underestimate ME. I'm not that easy to "end"... and that could still be YOUR downfall." With that, he gathers up the last of his strength to try and twist out of Blurr's grip and gain freedom- hopefully knocking the Autobot off balance while he's at it. Combat: Blast Off misses Blurr with his Last Hurrah (Grab) attack! Alas, Blast Off's efforts are in vain. The Combaticon must be far to weakened by this point to free himself from Blurr's onslaught. "Angry? Do I look angry? Haha. Maybe you're going insane from all the energon loss. Yeah, that must be it." He does not appear to be at all fazed by the insults. did Blast Off really think he would be? Knowing the reason behind all of his strange behavior? The speedster lets go of the Combaticon, letting him hit the floor hard, then aims a kick at his side with the intent of sending him flying across the room toward the other wall. Combat: Blurr misses Blast Off with his Say Hello To Another Wall (Kick) attack! Combat: Blast Off misses Blurr with his Professional to the End (Pistol) attack! Blast Off hits the ground with a thud. He has a sudden, brief thought of trying to explain all of this to Onslaught... and that somehow allows him to find the strength to push against the floor, despite how much it hurts, and roll to the side. He HAS to keep fighting.... his systems tell him he doesn't have much longer, but he can't retreat. He's a professional, after all... and professionals finish the job. And his job was to stop Blurr. He has to do so... or get off-lined trying. Besides, he's a Combaticon, and whoever heard of a Combaticon retreating when so MUCH was at STAKE? No, he's going to be a Combaticon to the end. Which even HE has to admit may be soon. He doesn't tell Blurr this, of course. The Combaticon is finding it hard to think, anyway, as his systems fade... he tries to shoot Blurr again, though the shot is a very low-powered one.... but it's all he's got at the moment. Blurr easily evades the low-powered shot, side-stepping to avoid it. He looks annoyed when Blast Off manages to dodge the attack. "Tch! Why won't you just fragging die already." Oh, the things he says when the other Autobots are not around! Certainly there is something not quite right with him. He's always been an arrogant snob, but right now he kind of sounds like Impactor. The speedster storms over to the entrance, and picks up a long piece of debris that had flown in here from the battle outside earlier. Yeah, it'll do...it's fairly sharp on the end. Bringing it down as hard as he can, he attempts to drive it into the Combaticon's chassis. Surely that will do it! Or will it? Combat: Blurr misses Blast Off with his So Bad At Dying (Kick) attack! Blast Off 's vision is staticy as Blurr attempts to stake the severely injured Combaticon. Yes, definitely not what he'd normally expect from the hovercar. Somehow, he manages to dodge that attack, too, using almost the very last of strength to roll to the side again. "Heh... *zkk* Like I said, I should NOT *crackle* be underestimated, Blurr.... I do not die easily, nor will I *zzzkkk* ever stop hounding you until I see YOU off-lined...." With that, he uses the remaining strength he has to raise his blaster up and fire, then his arm falls to the ground, finally frayed. But he has at least fought to the bitter end, like a proper Combaticon. Combat: Blast Off misses Blurr with his Final Blow attack! -3 "Either that, or you're offlined yourself." Blurr replies smugly. "Which might actually be happening within the next few astroseconds." Go ahead, roll around all you want, Blast Off! You'll eventually get stabbed. He continues to bring the makeshift weapon down on his opponent again and again, so fast it'd be hard to follow with the naked optic unless you were someone like Searchlight. The Combaticon attempts to shoot him again, but the speedster again evades it easily, even at such a close range. Still...it was impressive that he was still able to shoot, despite being on the verge of stasis lock. Of course, Blurr would never admit that out loud to anyone. Combat: Blurr strikes Blast Off with his Stop Delaying the Inevitable (Punch) attack! Combat: Blast Off falls to the ground, unconscious. Blast Off does his best to evade Blurr's attacks, but unfortunately, the Autobot is right... a strike is inevitable. When it hits, he screams in pain as circuits fry and sizzle in his torso, then the violet-gray optics dim. Well, he gave it his all... whatever else he may be, he is not a coward. Blurr drops the piece of debris, letting it fall to the floor next to the fallen Combaticon. He stands there for a moment, staring at the motionless form. Heh, he has to admit, he is impressed with Blast Off's determation to fight until the end, even when defeat was inevitable. This is something he doesn't usually expect from Decepticons. "Heh." He turns to the mainframe then, and sends off a beacon to his fellow Autobots, informing them that he had secured the area. Blast Off is many things. A coward isn't one of them.